[clubberkamar]

Hi guys, i have just finished reading all pages in this thread and made this account especially to thank you all for inspiring me to finally order my first custom IEM. Hahaha

Firstly i would like to thank psygeist, mimoulle, saraguie, loquah, lee730, maguire, and shini for what you guys posts are what encourages me to take the leap (my first IEM is just a shure 215). Reading the whole thread is a very good read for a noob like me (and what an enjoyment too!), so I thank every single poster in this thread.

At the end I ordered Mentor, though (and lost my portable DAP budget with it, haha). Hopefully mentor can 'school' my ears to better understand and perceive the nuances of better audio. To think that this all started because I demoed focal spirit pro plugged to RME babyface with audirvana+ trial version and realized that i'm missing a LOT hahaha

Again, thanks everyone. I learned a lot, and realized that there are still lots more need to be learned.

Ps. Hey noobandroid, i know how you feel. I had the design, color choice, artwork, even an otterbox pursuit 20 AND made the impression way before my fund for CIEM complete hahahahaha

 

[doublea71]

Wow - quite a leap from the 215 to the Mentor. I'm sure you're going to love it as long as the fit is good. Best of luck!

 

[Shini44]

Hey Clubb, i am glad that you made such a leap, trust me the Mentor will make you go crazy, you will be super happy with it, i also suggest you get a pico power amp , don't get pico slim for the Miracle or Mentor, another user who got pico dac, slim and power also do agree with me on that point, we both got Miracle, yet i have also Mentor :3   

in case you don't wana buy the amp then get Fiio X5

 

[clubberkamar]

Thanks doublea! Yep, I guess it's a giant leap. At first I was planning to go with two or three drivers ciem first, as I will be using it for live monitoring on stage. But this thread convinced me that if i want a more balanced sound and good sound (head?) stage then miracle is the way to go. I read here that miracle is somewhat dark/sparkle, has slightly recessed mids, and enough/not enough bass; but overall the pattern I see in the consensus is that it has great head stage, great resolution and is quite well balanced. That's all I ask for in a ciem.

Then I tried miracle universals on a stage performance. Oh man, it's just awesome! Usually when using IEM I feel disengaged from the crowd, it just can't beat the feel of monitor wedges. But with miracle (and ambience mics plus a good monitor engineer) I finally can hear my sounds in its proper space (and without the excessive volume). When in a stadium, it feels like in a stadium. When in a room, it feels like in a room. It's just pure awesomeness! Well, at least for me, since I haven't tried other manufacturers' ciem. Hahaha

Thanks for the recommendation, shini! I will keep it in mind when i'm looking for a portable amp. I think I will start modestly with ibasso DX50 later on for my portable setup, and then much later will be slowly upgrading it to X5 then to dx100 or similar one box solution. But for now the temporary setup would be from audirvana+ via USB to RME audio interface to mentor. It's not ideal, but it's also my setup for making beats on the road.

 

[Shini44]

for me the DX50/100 is something i will stay away from becuse they don't have Treble sparkle, in face they tend to have a smooth relaxed treble... my worst enemy!! @_@ and so far don't think the Fiio X5 is what i want, if i will go for a DAP its Sony ZX1 for sure!! :3 

 

[HungryPanda]

My impressions arrived at UM UK on 11th February so waiting patiently for the miracles to appear. I'm using a DX50 with Minerva Mi-Perfomer Pro's at the moment but have ordered a HifiMan HM-700 to pair up with the miracles.

 

[clubberkamar]

Whoa ZX1 looks so nice! But I think it's too big as a portable player for me. Dx50 or ak100 is the maximum size that I'd prefer for a DAP. They can fit together with ciem in an otterbox or I can just pocket it in my jeans pocket without bulging too much hahaha

 

[Wyd4]

I am currently waiting on a pair of Merlin's and I am hoping my iphone 5s will suffice for the time being. It certainly sounds better than my 160 gb Classic.
That said, and from memory it isn't a pinch on my old ak100. But again they are no good for ba unless you get the rwA or v2. There are so many dap options popping up now it's fantastic.

 

[clubberkamar]

guys, do you think i can use Fiio E5 (or E6/other portable amps) to lower the impedance of sources so i can plug Miracle to not-ideal sources without getting frequency deviations due to the high impedance of the source?

 

[H20Fidelity]

  guys, do you think i can use Fiio E5 (or E6/other portable amps) to lower the impedance of sources so i can plug Miracle to not-ideal sources without getting frequency deviations due to the high impedance of the source?

Yes you can, I am not sure on the technical terms unfortunately, But adding an amp (providing the amp has low output impedance) will cure the issue completely. Why don't you check out the popular C&C BH for $100. It will perform much better than the cheaper FiiO models and most prefer it over the more expensive FiiO E11. Another thing about this amp is it runs for an honest 80 hours and is no bigger than a credit card, it also has been measured with low out impedance, I think around 1ohm.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/644363/c-c-bh-portable-headphone-amp-80-hours-from-a-single-charge-buyer-review
 

 

[clubberkamar]

thanks h20! but i think C&C's weight is too heavy for my need. i'm thinking to just let Fiio dangle from the source's plug. i'd rather sacrifice a slight worse quality for the sake of practicality. better a slightly worse gear but always carried with me than a perfect gear but it got left at home most of the times because of carrying it is just too much a hassle.

 

[H20Fidelity]

  thanks h20! but i think C&C's weight is too heavy for my need. i'm thinking to just let Fiio dangle from the source's plug. i'd rather sacrifice a slight worse quality for the sake of practicality. better a slightly worse gear but always carried with me than a perfect gear but it got left at home most of the times because of carrying it is just too much a hassle.

Yes, BH is a little heavy for that application, E5 is then better suited.

 

[JuzModa]

Hi guys anyone can do a short review on the universal version? Planning to get as i am too young to get customs
Cheers

 

[noobandroid]

stephen has been quite impatient in his recent discussion in email with me, i was enquiring about the possibility to fix the socket area (AREA ! NOT THE SOCKET)  of my CIEM, the body part and not the sockets, and asks me to pay the fees even before the item arrives at the lab and evaluations on damage is done. It feels like rather than going through the hassle of checking, just pay up and change the sockets, even without any inspections. It could possibly be just some slight sanded off on the walls of the socket area that made it loose (or something). Don't you guys think it is too early to ask for payment when they haven't even seen my CIEM and made assessment to it?
 
I feel like I should be waiting for Lab's assessment and advice before I pay out for replacements, and let them just replace new sockets out of my fully functional sockets. He just threw me off and ask me to find UM Global directly too, which doesn't sound like him anyways, total weirdness
 
I want your opinions on this guys, cause the CIEM has been sent off to the lab, as in in transit already.  

 

[JuzModa]

How do these miracles sound with electric guitars?